KATHMANDU — A 21-year-old Nepali Sherpa guide plunged into a crevasse on Mount Everest, marking the third fatality in two weeks on the planet’s highest peak and fifth overall this season, officials reported Tuesday. Despite Middle East conflict disrupting travel, climbers flock undeterred to the 8,849-meter (29,032-ft) giant.
Phura Gyaljen Sherpa died near Camp III at around 7,200 m (23,620 ft) after slipping on snow. Earlier, 35-year-old Bijay Ghimire Bishwakarma perished in the Khumbu icefall during acclimatization, and 51-year-old Lakpa Dendi Sherpa on the base camp trek. Last week, American Johannesen Shelley, 53, succumbed on 8,463-m (27,765-ft) Makalu, and Czech David Ronbinek on nearby 7,678-m (25,190-ft) Makalu II.
Nepal issued 492 Everest permits this April-May season at $15,000 each, up from 478 in 2023, fueling a vital tourism lifeline for the aid- and remittance-reliant nation. Tourism official Himal Gautam noted, “Everest draws more climbers even as Mideast tensions hit tourism and trekking.”
Rope-fixing teams aim to secure the summit route by weekend, opening ascents if weather holds. Nepal unlocks over 400 Himalayan peaks yearly, though two dozen dominate, including Everest. An April ice block delayed the route by nearly two weeks, idling hundreds at base camp.